Diezel Schmidt Amp Review

Clips recorded with a 1978 Gibson Les Paul Custom. Clean clip recorded with a 2008 Fender American Strat with Lollar S Special pickups.

Diezel Amplification burst on the scene in 1994 with the mighty VH4 and VH4S amplifier heads, which caused a stir when Adam Jones of Tool embraced them as part of his triple-amp stage and recording rig. Since then, Diezel amps have found favor with players including Neil Schon, Metallica, Buckethead, and Weezer, to name a few.
Diezel amps are known for their power and definition, along with their quick attack, extreme versatility and their ability to stand out in the mix. But the company’s most recent creation, the three-channel, 30-watt Schmidt, represents a deviation from its high-gain, fire-breathing brethren with a Class-A power section and more vintage-styled tone options.

Hefty Tone
If you’re in the market for amplifier that’s light in weight, it might be wise to pick up a Schmidt head before deciding to purchase one. The amp head itself weighs a little over 46 pounds, making it a bit hefty for loading in and out of gigs and studios. It’s only 13 pounds lighter than Diezel’s high-gain monster Herbert, and weighty enough to remind me of lugging around an old Ampeg SVT from the late ‘60s that I used to use from time to time. Regardless of weight, the amp head was quite handsome. Visually it has a lot in common with older Mesa/Boogie Mark series heads, with a tall, deep cabinet that’s still narrower than most full-size amplifier heads.

Simple is as Simple Does
The Schmidt is simple by Diezel standards. Three channels are controlled by two sets of equalization and tone-shaping controls, along with a lone set of gain and volume knobs that alter the third (or More Crunch) channel’s sound.
The circuit itself is built around two totally independent preamps. The first channel is a straightforward clean channel, with controls for reverb, bass, midrange, treble, and volume. The second is for low to moderate high gain and features identical controls save for an additional knob for preamp gain. Finally, the third channel is built for ripping high gain tones. It shares the equalization section and reverb of the second channel, but has its own gain and master volume knobs to give the player the option to cut or boost the volume when the channel was engaged.

A native of the Pacific Northwest, Jordan grew up traveling the country as the son of theater technical directors and speech instructors. His exposure to the performing arts early on helped foster his love for music and attention to detail, and upon receiving his first guitar at age 15, he became hooked. Jordan brings a considerable background of gear knowledge and tech experience to Premier Guitar, and has contributed an extensive amount of articles, artist interviews and Rig Rundown videos since late 2008. He lives in the Iowa City area, where he also works to bring music education initiatives to both local and regional communities.

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